Wednesday, February 17, 2010

The crazy world that is DC these last few weeks continues. Last night I headed home via the bus up Wisconsin Ave. Its not much more than two miles between the store and home. It took me an hour and a half. This city is still a mess and all this has been keeping me from my duties. Its called exhaustion. At any rate I reviewed Rago's auction results and I was pretty good at most guesses and bad at a few.

There were some great deals and it shows that our economy is still creating environments for great buys. Here again are my bids and what the items sold for. That was fun!Sorry about the size of the pictures. Blogger software problems.

On February 12th and 13th, Rago's Auction House in Lambertville, NJ, is holding a big no reserve auction. No reserve means that there is no minimum that the auctioneer won't accept. As a result there no estimates as to where the bidding should begin. This makes for great fun amongst us auction hounds and can, with the right circumstances, result in a great buy.

Since there is no minimum bid denied to start the lot, the first offer can be way low. If there aren't enough people interested in the item, that price can stay low. It doesn't happen often but it does happen. This is a big auction so the chances for the great buy are good.

This a very large auction and a reflection of the the times. People are selling their treasures. Its not a fire sale, but obviously the house has many items it wants off the inventory list. Folks, this is an opportunity to grab something that might be on your list for a great price.

So this could be fun and a bit o'work and embarrassment for your friend Homer. I'm going to take a guess at what I think these items are worth. Most of them are outside my area of expertise, okay I'm Nooo appraiser but I have been doing this for awhile so I have "minimum" confidence..yea that was a pun. I'd love to hear what your estimate thoughts would be.This will makes the comments section funto read. Its a huge catalog which you can view here. I chose just a few items that I'll keep my eye on. Lets look.

Lot 178: TWO AMERICAN SILVER TANKARDS R & W Wilson octagonal coin silver tankard with engraved floral motif, Philadelphia, ca. 1825-1846 together with a Victorian sterling tankard with unknown hallmarks...My bid is $800.00SOLD FOR $336.00. Boy was I off there. Not a good start.

Lot 429: MODERN Console table with glass top on enameled steel base. 29 1/2" x 48" x 16"My bid $600.00. Its a classic, you could put that anywhere.SOLD FOR $366.00. A steal!! I'm not doing well am I?

Lot 589: HARVEY PROBBER Cabinet with two leather-covered sliding doors concealing three drawers on one side and single shelf on the other, over a lower shelf on tubular brass legs...My bid $800.00. Again, yeaa baby. Very "What is James Wearing."SOLD FOR $183.00. OH MY GOODNESS..so way off.

Why didn't you have a shot at that gold and glass bamboo table! Good thing I live such a Looooong way away! It might have gotten "ugly"LOL I was shocked the sivler went so low too. Love the club chairs - I would have bought them if I had the room ---- now , that might have been the problem-- a tankard is easy to find a spot for but two chairs ??? I'm guessing.

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